Each quarter, the AAO Society of Educators profiles an educator who is an emerging or long-time leader in orthodontic education. This quarter the SOE highlights Dr. James A. McNamara, 2025 SOE conference honoree, renowned educator and researcher, and founder of the Graduate Orthodontic Residency (GORP) program.
The SOE James A. McNamara Educational Leadership Conference will be April 24, 2025 in Philadelphia prior to Annual Session. It is open to SOE members, with a ticket required for attendance. When registering for Annual Session, be sure to select your ticket for this program.
Dr. McNamara will present the conference keynote address, “How Orthodontic Treatment Has Evolved During the Last 60 Years: A Personal Perspective.”
Now professor emeritus at the University of Michigan, Dr. McNamara began work on a PhD degree in anatomy at the University of Michigan after completing his dental and orthodontic education at the University of California – San Francisco. He joined the UM medical school faculty in 1970 and the School of Dentistry orthodontic faculty in 1984. He became a research scientist at the UM Center for Human Growth under the leadership of founding director Dr. Robert E. Moyers, former chair of the Department of Orthodontics at Michigan.
Dr. McNamara’s vast body of scientific and clinical research has addressed numerous topics impacting orthodontic treatment. His 340-plus journal publications have spanned many topics including craniofacial growth, orthopedic expansion of the maxilla, temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD), the Cervical Vertebral Maturation Method (used to determine the craniofacial skeletal maturation stage during the growth process), and the Carriere Motion Appliances.
Top Orthodontic and Dental Research Awards
In 2021 Dr. McNamara received the AAO Lifetime Achievement in Orthodontic Research Award, which recognizes significant contributions to the science related to orthodontics, and original and innovative research. In 2023, he received the American Dental Association Norton M. Ross Award for Excellence in Clinical Research.
Initiated in 1991, the annual Norton Ross Award recognizes significant contributions in clinical investigations that have advanced the diagnosis, treatment, and/or prevention of craniofacial-oral-dental diseases, as well as outstanding research endeavors in other areas. The only other orthodontist to receive the ADA Ross award was the late Dr. William Proffit, who was the recipient in 1994.
Dr. McNamara continues in his role as curator of the University of Michigan Growth Study, a position he has held since 1986. As an author or editor, he has contributed to 82 books, including his major textbook, Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics. Dr. McNamara also coauthored 2 atlases concerning normal growth in untreated subjects, An Atlas of Craniofacial Growth (analysis of serial lateral headfilms), and Standards of Human Occlusal Development (based on an analysis serial dental casts).
At the University of Michigan and in his private practice, Dr. McNamara has participated in the care of more than 15,000 patients. Now retired from clinical practice, he still teaches, lectures internationally, and continues to help organize the annual Moyers Symposium, which honors Dr. Moyers and recently celebrated its 50th year.
Learn about Dr. McNamara in the December 2024 AAO Practice Management Bulletin news feature, “Dr. James McNamara to Headline Educators Meeting at 2025 Annual Session.”
Access the December 2024 Practice Management Bulletin
